The Starry Night, 1889 (oil on canvas), by Vincent van Gogh, Museum of Modern Art, New York
Monday, May 8, 2023
7:30 PM
When Cezanne and Van Gogh met in Paris in 1886, they despised each other, a contempt that spilled over in their opinions of each other’s work. Indeed, their respective styles were antithetical. Vincent’s art is visceral, Cezanne’s, cerebral. Vincent injected into his paintings his immense psychological yearnings, whereas Cezanne erects psychological barriers to lock the viewer out of his works. Cezanne’s forms are solid and immutable; Vincent’s inanimate objects dance with a kinetic energy. We can’t find Cezanne, the man, in his paintings; in Vincent’s canvases we can’t avoid him.
Unlike the very conventional Matisse, Vincent Van Gogh’s life was one of alienation, debilitating mental illness, and ultimately, suicide. Keenly aware of the isolation his odd behavior caused, he poured his longing for relationships, for human communion, into his paintings. He bends pigment and brushstrokes to his psychic needs. Where, ultimately, do we find Vincent? Not in wheat fields, nor in nighttime skies, nor doleful visages, but in the most basic truth about art: the stroke of hand to canvas.
About Linda Blair:
Linda Blair has taught art history for many years, at the La Jolla Athenaeum and UC San Diego Osher; she was a docent at The Cloisters. She holds a BA from Mills College and an MA from USD. She is an active volunteer at UC San Diego, dedicated to raising scholarship funds.
The lecture will be in person at the Athenaeum Music & Arts Library. There are no physical tickets for this event. Your name will be on an attendee list at the front door. Doors open at 7 p.m. Seating is first-come; first-served. This event will be presented in compliance with State of California and County of San Diego health regulations as applicable at the time of the lecture.
Masks optional. If you have a fever, cough, or flu-like symptoms, please stay home.